Effect of health on economic growth in Algeria : an application of ARDL bounds test to cointegration

Abstract EN

In this paper, the growth effect of health in Algeria is examined for the period 1970 to 2019.

we use life expectancy at birth, and government expenditure on health as a proxy for health, and real per capita GDP as a proxy for economic growth.

after employing ARDL bounds test approach to cointegration, and controlling for the effects of government expenditure education, inflation, and gross fixed capital formation, the study concludes that the improvement in life expectancy positive affects economic growth in Algeria .an inverse relationship between govern expenditure on health and PGDP was found with a 1% increase in govern expenditure on health leading to a decline in PGDP of about 0.60% per annum.

the implication is that improvement in health status of the population raises output in the economy.

in this regard, policy should aim at raising health sector investment and strengthen the healthcare system to improve health status.